The present invention relates generally to the field of elevator control and security, and more particularly to providing a video aided elevator system capable of anonymously tracking elevator passengers to improve elevator dispatch and door control.
Elevator performance, as perceived by elevator passengers, is derived from a number of factors. To a typical elevator passenger, the most important factor is time. As time-based parameters are minimized, passenger satisfaction with the service of the elevator improves. The overall amount of time a passenger associates with elevator performance can be broken down into three time intervals.
The first time interval is the amount of time a passenger waits in an elevator hall for an elevator to arrive, hereafter the “wait time”. Typically, the wait time consists of the time beginning when a passenger pushes an elevator call button, and ending when an elevator arrives at the passenger's floor. The second time interval is the “door dwell time” or the amount of time the elevator doors are open, allowing passengers to enter or leave the elevator. It would be beneficial to minimize the amount of time the elevator doors remain open, after all waiting passengers have entered or exited an elevator cab. The third time interval is the “ride time” or amount of time a passenger spends in the elevator. If a number of passengers are riding on the elevator, then the ride time may also include stops on a number of intermediate floors.
A number of systems and algorithms have been developed to minimize the total time associated with using an elevator. For example, destination entry systems have begun to replace typical call button elevator systems. Destination entry systems require a user to indicate the desired destination floor, typically at a kiosk or workstation adjacent to an elevator hall. Based on the current status of elevator cabs (including location and assigned destinations), an elevator control system assigns the user to a specific elevator cab. The algorithms employed by destination entry systems in assigning elevator cabs to individual passengers are aimed at improving elevator performance, including minimizing the wait time and ride time of elevator passengers. The efficient assignment of elevator cabs to specific users improves elevator performance, although the use of destination entry systems creates new obstacles to efficiency, such as the situation in which an elevator cab is assigned to a user that subsequently decides not to take the elevator, or stops to chat in an elevator hall for an extended period of time. Despite the lack of a passenger, the assigned elevator cab will still travel to the destination floor entered by the passenger, increasing inefficiency of the system. Similarly, a passenger that enters an unassigned elevator cab may be taken to the wrong floor, which requires subsequent elevator service to transport the passenger to the correct floor. Therefore, it would be beneficial to develop a system, and in particular a system suited to solve some of the problems associated with destination entry systems, that will increase the efficiency of elevator operations.
Many elevator systems are also integrated with access control and security systems. The goal of these systems is to detect, and if possible, prevent unauthorized users from gaining access to secure areas. Because elevators act as access points to many locations within a building, elevator doors and cabs are well suited to perform access control. In the case of destination entry systems, it is also important to ensure passengers enter the assigned elevator cab (i.e., the elevator cab assigned to take them to the desired destination floor). Therefore, it would be desirable for an elevator system to provide access control as well as ensuring that passengers enter the correct elevator cab.